Confucius’s and Peter Kemp’s Philosophies of Education, A Synthesis

• Main Author: Dy, Manuel B, Jr
• Format: text
• Published: Archīum Ateneo 2020
• Subjects: Philosophy of Education; Global Citizenship; Character Cultivation; Care; Exemplar; Philosophy
• Online Access: https://archium.ateneo.edu/philo-faculty-pubs/56; https://www.pdcnet.org/ecoethica/content/ecoethica_2020_0009_0035_0054
• Institution: Ateneo De Manila University

The intent of this article is not to compare the philosophies of education of Confucius and Peter Kemp but to draw out what is perennial in Confucius’s philosophy of education and bring it to the contemporary context in Peter Kemp’s philosophy of education. The first part deals with Confucius’s teachings on education. The second part highlights Peter Kemp’s philosophy of education, the context of which is globalization and its dangers. The synthesis of both philosophies would mean that education is a right that everyone is entitled to, that education is basically cultivation of character more than instruction, that the virtues of ren, righteousness, wisdom, and propriety can be adapted and applied to the demands of global citizenship. The method of teaching can be both dialogical (Confucius) and democratic (Kemp) when the teacher is passionate, engaged, knowledgeable of issues, caring for students, and an exemplar of what she teachers.